He's going to tell his story. Permanent journey. Turned all his talents as a reporter and storyteller on himself to reveal a hard discovery that made him a happier person. New book "10% happier" how it might work for you. Look at the low moment where his adventure began. From ABC news, this is "Good morning America." It's June 7th, 2004, the most embarrassing day of my life. We're going to go now to Dan Harris at the news desk. Good morning, Charlie and Diane. This is me ten years ago. The reason this is the most embarrassing day of my life. Not that it looks like I've been attracted by a blow dryer and can of hair spray. I'm about to freak out. One of the most commonly medications may provide a big bonus. Researchers report people who take statins for at least five years may also lower their risk for cancer. But it's too early to prescribe statins slowly for cancer production. At this point I realize I'm helpless so I bail right in the middle. That does it for news. We'll go back now to robin and Charlie. The control room clearly taken by surprise continues to roll video for the next story about harry potter which I was no longer able to read. All right. Thanks very much Dan Harris at the news desk with some of the headlines. Once the fear subsided. Humiliation rushed in. I knew with rock solid certainty that I had just had a panic attack on national television. I didn't know it at the time but what happened next would change my life forever. And, Dan this, is such a gripping book. I read it basically in one sitting. It's so well done but that moment right there for you, low point. Remarkably controlled given what was happening inside your head. You had realized that you'd become something of an adrenaline junkie. Yes, yes, I think it stems from a lot of Americans can relate to. A desire to be great at my job. When I got to ax and my late 20s, you were here at that time. I was green and I knew it and I was insecure about it and my solution was to become a workaholic and after 9/11 I volunteered to go overseas and cover wars for many, many years and when I finally came home and slowed down you can see me from my early days where I looked barely post pew best sent. I crashed and burned and did a stupid thing and briefly self-medicated with recreational drugs and that most likely caused the panic attack. As you're dealing with this you get set on a different journey. Covering it for ABC and as you're looking at these issues raised on this beat you also come upon something that's helped a lot of people, meditation and you came to it as a huge skeptic. Huge skeptic. I always thought it was for Hipp hippies, people who collect crystals and listen to John Tesh music, no offense, John, but that's not for mew but I found it's a simple brain exercise and an enormous amount of studies that shows it can boost your immune system and blood pressure and literal rewire parts of your brain and can shrink the gray matter in the part of your brain that regulates stress. It is extraordinary. And thus 10% happier. Yes. So just we were seeing pictures and what distracts them. You practice meditation as a way to redirect that distraction. Exactly. Exactly. The mind, our mind, everybody's mind, the human condition is out of control. If you sit and look at your mind, you're thinking constantly about what did I have for lump. Why did the academy awards give best picture to "Dances with wolves" instead of idea goodfellas." What did I say stupidly yesterday? You're constantly racing mind. Walk around in a fog of memories and projections into the future instead of what's happening right now. What meditation does is allow you to come back to what's happening right now, focus and most importantly, to see what's going on in your head at any given moment and not get carried away. That's a superpower. You've written a brilliant book about it. Dan Harris, thanks very much.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

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